All 10 Middle-earth Movies, Ranked by How Entertaining It Is

The popularity of the modern fantasy genre can be traced back to J. R. R. Tolkien, an English professor specializing in philology who had a deep love for ancient mythology. In 1937, he released his first novel, The Hobbit, which was so popular that his publishers asked for a sequel. Drawing inspiration from his personal legendarium—which would be posthumously released as The Silmarillion—Tolkien released The Lord of the Rings in 1954, and its success has influenced countless writers and lovers of fantasy worlds.

While the only film adaptation of Tolkien’s work released during his lifetime was the infamous 1967 Hobbit film, several other filmmakers have taken their shot at bringing Middle-earth to life. The most well-known films are the live-action ones by Sir Peter Jackson, but several animated films have also been released. This list will rank every Middle-earth movie based on how entertaining they are. Factors considered are the film’s quality, rewatchability, and how well they translate Tolkien’s works onto the big screen.

10

‘The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim’ (2024)

Directed by Kenji Kamiyama

Tolkien was one of the greatest worldbuilders of all time and wasn’t satisfied with just telling the story of the One Ring. At the back of The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, he included a massive appendix that featured all manner of details, ranging from short stories to extensive histories concerning the key bloodlines and kingdoms. One of these stories concerning the history of Rohan was chosen for an animated film, and Philippa Boyens, who co-wrote the Lord of the Rings films with Jackson and Fran Walsh, and Miranda Otto, who played Éowyn, joined the project to help it connect with Jackson’s trilogy. Sadly, it did little to improve the film’s quality.

The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim‘s most glaring problem is its animation: over 60 animation companies were contracted to help expand the film from 90 minutes to 130, resulting in awkward editing, stiff movements outside of action scenes, and an inconsistent level of quality. Beyond the animation, the film isn’t very fun due to the story and writing. The main character, Héra (Gaia Wise), who steals the spotlight from the real main character, Helm Hammerhand (Brian Cox), feels like a poor man’s attempt at re-creating the strong heroines from Studio Ghibli and, thus, out of place in Tolkien’s world. It also reeks of unnecessary references, such as a random appearance from The Watcher in the Water and orcs searching for rings, because heaven forbid we have a Middle-earth film that doesn’t mention Sauron.

9

‘The Return of the King’ (1980)

Directed by Jules Bass and Arthur Rankin Jr.

When people think of Rankin/Bass, their minds likely go to their beloved stop-motion holiday specials. However, the company also produced several films with the Japanese animation studio Topcraft, which would later morph into Studio Ghibli. Together, they adapted The Hobbit in 1977, and then for some reason decided to skip the first two-thirds of The Lord of the Rings and jump right into The Return of the King. If that wasn’t enough of a red flag, the film is told almost entirely through flashback by the film-only character, The Minstrel of Gondor (Glenn Yarbrough).

The pacing is what really kills the movie: an hour and a half is not enough time to do justice to what is supposed to be the conclusion to an epic trilogy, and many characters and plotlines are either cut or severely reduced. One of the worst offenders is Denethor (William Conrad), who is reduced to little more than a crazed old man since neither Boromir nor Faramir are mentioned. Still, it has some good qualities: the animation is stylistic and helps to give the film a mystical atmosphere, and the casting is superb, especially John Huston and Orson Bean, who return from The Hobbit to voice Gandalf and Bilbo/Frodo, respectively.

8

‘The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug’ (2013)

Directed by Sir Peter Jackson

Jackson’s Hobbit trilogy has to be one of the most famous examples of a troubled production in recent cinema history. He originally planned to be a producer and let Guillermo del Toro direct, but after del Toro left due to delays, Jackson stepped back into the director’s chair. Unfortunately, he had no prep-time due to the film’s strict 2012-2014 release dates and found himself relying on CGI instead of practical effects, and often filming scenes without storyboards or a complete script. Perhaps the best example of how hectic the process was can be seen in the second film, which covers the events from Bilbo (Martin Freeman) and the dwarves meeting the skin-changer, Beorn (Mikael Persbrandt), to a close encounter with the dragon, Smaug (Benedict Cumberbatch).

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug is the most grim and bloated of the three films, with none of the whimsy of the first movie or the spectacle of the third. Instead, we’re treated to grim towns that hammer in the already painfully obvious “greed is bad” message, tensionless action sequences, and a boring love triangle between two elves and a dwarf. Where the film does receive some praise is in its character interactions, particularly Bilbo and Smaug’s iconic conversation, and Lee Pace‘s performance as Thranduill, which cements him as one of the best elves in Middle-earth.

7

‘The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies’ (2014)

Directed by Sir Peter Jackson

Jackson was struggling while working on the first two Hobbit films, but when it came time for The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, he almost broke. The lack of prep time meant that he had no idea how to film the titular battle, especially since the description in the book was sparse due to Bilbo being knocked unconscious. This led to a delay in filming while Jackson figured things out. Other problems with the production included Sir Billy Connolly being replaced by a CGI character due to early-stage Parkinson’s disease and the dwarf actors having to shed their armor because it was impractical for fight scenes.

The result is a film that is dominated by a battle that is flooded with CGI armies bashing into one another until it zooms in on the main characters. Still, it’s a more “fun” movie than Desolation of Smaug thanks to some gags Jackson throws into the battle to keep things lively, Connolly’s energy as Dáin Ironfoot, and the showdown between Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage) and Azog the Defiler (Manu Bennett). If you’re going to watch the film, though, find the Extended Edition, as it adds more gags and contains plot-relevant information that was cut from the theatrical release, namely the fate of the Arkenstone.

6

‘The Lord of the Rings’ (1978)

Directed by Ralph Bakshi

Ralph Bakshi is one of the most influential names in animation, having directed numerous movies that proved that animation could tackle more adult themes. He fell in love with Tolkien’s work and eventually succeeded in getting the go-ahead on an animated adaptation. Bakshi wanted to make the film as authentic to the books as possible, keeping large sections of dialogue unaltered, and even met with Tolkien’s daughter, Priscilla Tolkien, for advice on adapting her father’s work. He even brought in Peter S. Beagle, author of The Last Unicorn, to help finalize the script.

The finished product is a mixed bag, but certainly a film you won’t forget anytime soon. Bakshi succeeded in keeping the tone and atmosphere of the books through the dialogue and his stylistic background choices, and his use of rotoscoping techniques allowed for more realistic movements and large-scale battles. However, the film suffers from pacing and character issues since it combines both Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers, and many of the character designs look rather silly. Still, there’s a lot to love, thanks to its creativity, and there are numerous scenes that Jackson all but copied for his trilogy.

5

‘The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey’ (2012)

Directed by Sir Peter Jackson

In some ways, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey was the easiest of the three films to make, but the production still wasn’t without its problems. Since the team didn’t have the time to create sets for the deceptive camera angles that made the hobbits and dwarves look small, Jackson used CGI as a shortcut, which led to Sir Ian McKellen breaking down on set due to the stress of acting alone on a green screen. Jackson was also experimenting with 3D technology and shooting the film at 48 frames per second, though most cinemas showed the standard 24 frames per second version.

While the problems of later films are present here, An Unexpected Journey is the best of the trilogy. The main reason is that it remembers that Bilbo is supposed to be the main character and gives him an arc of discovering his courage and winning the friendship of Thorin, who initially sees him as a burden. It’s also the least grim film, with moments of levity in the form of the dwarves and Bilbo bonding and their humorous introductions.

4

‘The Hobbit’ (1977)

Directed by Jules Bass and Arthur Rankin Jr.

When Rankin/Bass first dipped their toe into adapting Tolkien’s work, they did so intending to adapt what was written rather than adding material. The most that was added were numerous songs by Glenn Yarbrough, and even then, many of the songs were adapted from ones Tolkien wrote. If anything, the biggest sins of this adaptation of The Hobbit are that events had to be condensed for a shorter runtime, and some of the character designs were questionable, such as Smaug (Richard Boone) being depicted as a large cat. And yet, this adaptation is arguably much more faithful to the book than any of Jackson’s films.

Firstly, Bilbo (Orson Bean) is unquestionably the main character, and the story is told entirely from his perspective. Bean’s performance as Bilbo is phenomenal, capturing his frustration at the adventure while maintaining a bit of a playful edge that only grows as he becomes more confident in himself. The film also maintains a strong fairy-tale aesthetic thanks to the character designs that do work, such as the dwarves and Bard (John Stephenson), and Yarbrough’s songs, which perfectly capture the spirit of adventure and the mystical qualities that draw us to the fantasy genre.

3

‘The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring’ (2001)

Directed by Sir Peter Jackson

Adapting Tolkien’s work into live action had always seemed impossible, but after Jurassic Park broke new ground with its impressive effects, Jackson knew that technology was finally ready for the task. Originally, the plan was to adapt the books into two films under Miramax, but after they dropped the project in 1998, New Line Cinema hired Jackson, Walsh, and Boyens to write and direct a trilogy. Meticulous detail went into the production, from designing impressive sets that created optical illusions that made the hobbits shorter than everyone else to intricate details on the armor and weapons to make them seem more realistic. The script also underwent constant re-writing as the actors brought their characters to life.

The Fellowship of the Ring starts the trilogy off with a bang and is the golden rule of book-to-film adaptation. Everything looks and feels like an authentic fantasy world, from the pleasant green hills and good food of Hobbiton to the long-lost majesty of Khazad-dûm. It also does a wonderful job of establishing all the major characters and plotlines without it feeling too exposition-heavy, which keeps the story moving at a steady pace.

2

‘The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers’ (2002)

Directed by Sir Peter Jackson

Jackson shot his trilogy back-to-back and made use of groundbreaking effects to bring Middle-earth to life, and a lot of that shines through in The Two Towers. The city of Edoras was built to scale over nine months, various large-scale models were used for fantastical locations like the Tower of Orthank, and revolutionary motion-capture technology made Gollum (Andy Serkis) look and feel more lifelike than any CGI character before him. The climactic battle at Helm’s Deep took four months to film during night shoots in the rain and mud, and at one point, Arwen (Liv Tyler) was planned to be there. Many of the actors also suffered injuries on set: Viggo Mortensen famously broke his toe when he kicked a helmet, Orlando Bloom broke ribs when he fell off a horse, and Brett Beattie, the stunt double for John Rhys-Davis, dislocated his knee.

The Two Towers outdoes the spectacle and epic scale of Fellowship of the Ring thanks to its grander scale, intense action, and deeper character arcs. New characters like Gollum, Théoden (Bernard Hill), and Faramir (David Wenham) instantly became fan favorites thanks to how rich their characters are, while old characters find themselves pushed into more difficult situations that test the limits of their friendships. Helm’s Deep also set a massive bar for how fantasy battles can be portrayed on film and remains one of the best, thanks to the volume of creatures on screen, the tight choreography, and the emotional journey from a desperate last stand to triumphant victory.

1

‘The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King’ (2003)

Directed by Sir Peter Jackson

The Return of the King saw the most re-shoots and pick-up shoots of the three films, with Jackson filming Aragorn’s (Mortensen) coronation in December 2003 and extended scenes well into 2004 after the film had been released. A lot of time was then spent editing, including the controversial removal of the death of Saruman (Sir Christopher Lee), which wouldn’t be restored until the extended edition. It contained some of the most impressive choreography out of all the films, including the Ride of the Rohirrim, one of the largest cavalry charges ever put on film, which featured over 150 equestrians. Along with making over a billion dollars at the box office, the film won all 11 Academy Awards it was nominated for, including Best Picture.

It’s impossible to understate how epic this film is, both in terms of its battles and its emotional payoffs. The Battle of the Pelennor Fields is a creative spectacle of real-world tactics blended with fantastical elements, while Frodo and Sam’s (Sean Astin) journey shows the unbreakable power of friendship overcoming despair and hardship. Return of the King pulls you into its emotional journey: you cheer alongside the Rohirrim as they charge the orcs, you smile with tears in your eyes as Aragorn embraces his destiny, and you weep as Frodo bids farewell to his friends at the Grey Havens, all while Howard Shore’s fantastic score helps make those emotions more raw.

NEXT: Peter Jackson’s Controversial Change to ‘Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers’ Went Against Tolkien’s Concept of Middle-earth